Pages

Sunday, 18 May 2014

Rukh Egg

Since my last review was about an okay egg, I figured I'd look at a better egg right after. Why is this better than Roc Egg? Well, let's take this opportunity to learn about how minor differences can make one card much better than another.

#1: 3/3 vs. 4/4

Roc Egg makes a 3/3 whereas this makes a 4/4. That one power/toughness difference can make a fair amount of difference, mainly when it comes to removal. "3" is generally the "magic number" when it comes to removal (see: Ajani Vengeant, Claws of Wirewood, Lady Caleria, Searing Spear, etc)/ I'm not saying there are no cards that deal more than 3 damage (Mizzium Mortars is a thing), but a good chunk of direct damage removal does 3 or less damage, so having 4 toughness makes a big difference. Having an extra point of power helps too.

#2: Immediately vs. End of Turn

This is kind of minor difference, but this can make a difference in certain situations, especially against boardwipes. If someone wants to make sure you don't get that 3/3 flyer, they may swing at you with something like Typhoid Rats and trick you into blocking with your egg just to boardwipe in their second main phase (I've seen it done a few times). If the token comes in at the end of turn, your opponent has no opportunity to boardwipe. Also, there's no real benefit (save one) to having the creature come into play immediately anyway. If the egg dies as a result of combat, there's no need for a creature on your opponent's second main phase. If it dies on your turn as a result as a sack on your turn, the creature can't attack anyway (without help of course). The only benefit to it coming in right away is that you can equip/enchant the token (if it's your turn).

#3: Defender vs. Without Defender

This is the dumbest, yet most poignant difference between Roc Egg and this. Yeah, it's stupid that you can roll an egg with a Sword of Fire and Ice and a Grappling Hook glued to it towards your opponent sounds dumb, but it's still a 2/5 double striker with a Sword of Fire and Ice on it! No matter how you try to write off an egg that can attack, at the end of the day, it's a creature that can attack, which can hugely change the course of a game later on.

For those three reasons, this card is better than Roc Egg, even if it costs 1 more. Yes, it's still a 0/3 for 4, but it turns into a 4/4 flyer and it can attack. Not exactly Power 9, but still pretty decent.